Sunday, September 25, 2016

Pittsburgh, PA Edition: Wigle Whiskey

I can't think of a much better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than at a whiskey tasting. Right?

Pittsburgh's Wigle Whiskey (pronounced 'wiggle') does tours of both its distillery and barrelhouse. We bought tickets to tour the distillery, and while we were waiting, we were treated to a complimentary drink (I guess not complimentary because it's probably in the ticket price BUT). Score.

The sort of garage door space opened so there was a light breeze blowing through. A few different stations were set up for people who were doing just a tasting of the various whiskeys. It's a small, but pretty cool space.

I ordered the Rhubarb Party cocktail while we waited. It had ginger, rhubarb syrup, simple syrup, fresh lime juice, seltzer, rosemary lavender bitters and something else I'm probably forgetting - but this was phenomenal. Like, in the top drinks I've had in my life phenomenal.

The tour itself was a bit lackluster. Our tour guide was funny and poked fun, but I had to roll my eyes a few times with the West Virginia jokes and only men like whiskey jokes. Whatever. But, there wasn't a ton to the tour - we kinda walked around back and he constructed a story about how the company got started. There were a few samples along the way.

And as far as the actual whiskeys, I liked the wheat better than the rye, but I don't know that I've been properly schooled on how to taste whiskey. I think I might need to take another stab at this because once I learned how to taste bourbon, my experience on the bourbon trail was totally different. I should've taken some of that knowledge I had learned there, but the drinks started hitting me so I don't even know if it would have mattered.

And, to finish off the tour, we got to try these small chocolates. They were OK, but darker chocolate isn't my favorite. Overall, something fun to do on a Saturday afternoon. Prep your tastebuds for a good bit of whiskey and have fun.Grade: B

The WV Pepperoni Roll

The West Virginia Pepperoni Roll is a comprehensive history of the unofficial state food of West Virginia. It tells the story of the immigrants, business owners, and more who have devoured this simple yet practical food since its invention. Order here.